I flew over the vast range of the land and found it really pleasant. The people were all staring at me as I flew over small cities, villagers and even just houses. Each of them stopped working and looked at me while I flew over it back to the duchy. I didn't really know where Ryan was but I had to get him to the capital. If Ryan wouldn't be there, I would make sure to find him somewhere else.
Ah it just feels great to fly!
"Wow..."
It seemed as if my father was astonished to fly for the very first time. To be honest, I forgot that he was on my back when I was up there enjoying the wind against my face. It was just soo nice. Besides that there was no rain, and no bad weather. Best time to fly, if I say so myself.
"Father, do you think Ryan is at home?"
"He should be. While we went to the Capital, they made their way back home."
"Alright....hold on tight!"
"Will do. Don't worry about me."
"ROAAAAAARRRRRR!
I let out a roar before I started dropping down to gain a bit more speed and fly over the trees and everything else. It was a different experience and I thought my father would like this one as well, which is why I was now flying about a meter above the treelines and speeding up. I didn't really know how long the normal carriage ride would take us to get back but flying was without a doubt the fastest method here.
A couple of villages later and some forest further, I found our duchy and started slowing down as I flew over the city and started closing up the castle. All the people below me started cheating and I could hear them but ignored them since I had a destination to get to. Sooner or later I finally got back home and had the duke come out to greet me. Just to make sure about one thing, I didn't ask for my grandfather to come out or for Emi and the knights or my brothers and all the others to come out. They simply did when they heard the horns signal.
Slowly I landed down on the ground and let my father slide down before looking at them in my dragon form. Some have seen me already but others didn't.
"WOW look at you sis!"
"Welcome back my dear granddaughter."
A nod was all I did before shifting back. This time I had the magic around me to reconstruct the dress I was wearing including the veil. Magic was quite handy especially when I was now able to fully control it. I don't know what happened but ever after I woke up after the war, I could feel everything sharper. Besides that I just needed to think about what I wanted to do in order for it to happen. It was so weird and I didn't have any explanation for it at all.
"Glad to be back."
"Sis....."
"Ah Alex still doesn't know..."
"Pffff-"
"That's not fair! I wanted to have a little sister!"
"Shut up Alex."
"But Ryan!"
"She saved us all."
"I know but still.. I could have spoiled her soo much..."
Every single person started laughing thanks to that statement but we didn't have much time to spare. Of course now that the king was gone, there wouldn't be any immediate threat. That is if it was considered that the state wasn't working properly was a good thing. The current threat we had was the neighboring countries to find this out and start attacking us. The duchy and its people were the sword and the shield of this country. They wouldn't let this happen easily from our side. However, what about the other sides of the country? We were just in the furthest corner after all.
We have to get the kingdom on track again!
It is bad if anyone finds out about this...
A war could start out... and it wouldn't just be against one of our neighboring countries for sure... they will all take their chances especially without military power being quite low about now... not counting myself...what a problem...
It seemed as if I was not the only one worried about this because my grandfather made us all follow him after we stopped laughing.
"We need to have a family meeting."
"I agree with you father."
"Yes, indeed."
"Let's do this immediately!"
All three brothers were agreeing to this and us children could only follow them inside to the meeting room. There was one huge room where everyone had a place around the table. Right now it was just the duke, his three sons, Alex, Ryan and me. The other people of our family were excluded since this was about the fate of the duchy as well as the kingdom and all the respective people were there.
"Alright, let's talk about what happened first. As you all know the crown had opened fire first and we accepted the declaration of war. Thanks to Viviana and Ryan here, we managed to win that war with fewer casualties than we had initially expected."
"After this, Aneko, Micheal, Viviana and I went to the king to have a talk with him. He is a stubborn old man and refuses to listen or talk to us."
"As expected brother..."
"I agree here as well. Brother, did you really think that old man would talk with you?"
"I was the one suggesting that."
I couldn't simply leave them to attack my father when the real idea behind this whole peace talk thing was me. My father wanted to charge into the castle and kill everyone there who would get into his way. That was no secret.
"I believe every life should get a second chance and a chance to get even with their sins."
"What a good heart you have but that wouldn't work with a man like this."
"That is something I also found out."
I never saw my fathers brother officially before the war but based on the description, I knew that I was talking to the librarian, the bookworm of the family.
"We are facing some difficult times right now."
"Why is that, grandfather?"
"The duchy can survive thanks to us since we are rather independent. The kingdom itself is not independent. It needs someone to lead it and someone to stand behind the crown. Alex you might be young but you should know what will happen to the weak."
"They get consumed."
"Indeed. The neighboring countries are just waiting for an open opportunity like this."
"So what are we supposed to do?"
Me and father knew the answer to this since we talked about this earlier but the others didn't know about our decision. Besides that for some reason they were all looking at me right now. Was I the one knowing the answer? No, was I the solution? I really didn't get why they would look at me at all.
"Ryan, you should be the next king."
Since they were already expecting me to say something, I just decided and went ahead to say that. Needless to say that I continued to say what would happen with the duchy as well.
"Alex, you will be the next heir to the duchy instead of Ryan."
My father was nodding in agreement while I was saying this but I could see the shock in their faces. The other adults seemed to think about this for a bit but also started to nod.
"The people in this kingdom want one of our people to be on the crown. They need a strong and helping hand to lead them to a better future."
"She is right. Ryan, you are young but you know everything there is to know about leading this duchy. Leading the kingdome will be no different. If you need help, we will be there for you. As for all the knowledge you will need, just ask either me or the magic tower master for help."
"Are you sure uncle this is a good idea?"
"This is the best idea we have right now."
"Indeed."
"But.. wait! I will be heir then?"
"Yes Alex."
"I never... I... what? This is crazy!"
"Alex, Ryan needs someone he can trust and someone he can lean on in good and dark times. This is the best solution since we are known to be the sword and the shield of the empire. We are the first and last line of defense!"
"I am counting on you brother!"
"How can you simply accept this Ryan!"
"Do I have a choice? The people need us!"
"I know but this is not fair! What about Vivi then!"
"Me?!"
I didn't know what was about me?! For a person who didn't even belong to this world, I was doing quite a lot for it and I knew I got attached to the people but I had this feeling that I would one day get back. If that is true then I was the wrong person for this place.
"She is a Saintess."
"A Saintess?"
"Yes. Her duty is to travel around and make sure that the people are not suffering. Didn't you see her dragon appearance before? The blood flowing through her veins is pure. Are you suggesting to keep back a dragon and make it suffer? Nonetheless your very own sister?"
This was what my grandfather said and it made sense. I didn't know why but it made sense to me. Alex also didn't say anything more than that. There was just nothing to say back. The kingdom needed us as a family and as a force.
"I am sorry..."
"It's alright Alex."
"I didn't think about that...."
"Is there anything else we have to discuss further? It seems as if we now have a plan to go forward with."
Everyone in the room agreed to this and there was really no time to spare. This was why I walked down the hallways to the garden to shift into a dragon together with Ryan. He said his goodbye to the family but it was not a farewell but rather a see you soon. We, the Underwoods, understood that blood was thicker than water and we could count on each other.
"Vivi, do you really believe I will be a good king?"
"I do. Brother, I don't know anyone else who thinks soo much about his own people and family."
"How can you say that for sure?"
"I've seen you act on the battlefield. You were there to help the soldiers and led them as well. You are a natural born leader. Just believe in yourself."
"Easier done than said."
"I know... but Ryan, you will always have our family backing you up. Not only them but the magic tower and even the church as well! So if you can't trust yourself then trust in their judgment or in mine.
"I will... thanks."
A small talk between brother and sister but it was enough to lift his spirit back up. I could tell that he was scared. It was a totally natural feeling. Who wouldn't be scared if they found out that they are gonna be king! It was a thrilling feeling but then the burden and all the pressure that would come with that position was also quite frightening to think off.
"Ryan, let me show you what we were fighting for."
Just like that I shifted into my dragon form and let him get on my back. Next thing I did was get up in the air and circle slowly around our duchy and then continue to fly over the kingdome. I wanted to show him all the people who were looking up to us. The scenery was just breathtaking. Everything seemed so peaceful except for the place the war took down. It was a reminder to everyone what it meant to lose their dear ones as well as nature. It was simply a contaminated area filled with blood and the stench of death. Quite a sad scene but I wanted Ryan to see everything and understand what we are fighting for, what we stand for and how precious this little place was.
When I got back to the imperial palace garden, I let Ryan get down first before I would shift back and look at the man.
"Thank you Vivi for showing me everything... I feel better now."
"You're welcome."
"Alright! I feel confident now! A lot of people are counting me after all."
"That's the spirit brother!"